Lock



R. BIENAIME March 1, 1932.

Filed July 19, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet l R. BIENAIME March 1, 1932.

LOCK

Filed July 19, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 1 a ifh zz Ill-l l l L I I I l I l l ll Patented Mar. 1, 1932 7 ROBERT BIENAIME,

PATENT OFFICE or PARIS, FRANCE LOCK Application filed July 19, 1930, Serial No.

The present invention relates to locks and, more particularly, to those of the type adapted to be used on automobiles and like structures submitted to shock and vibration.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide a form of lock in which any wear of the working parts is automatically corrected and compensated.

Other objects will appear in the course of lo the detailed description now to be given with reference to the accompanying drawings, in

which:

Fig. 1 is an elevation, partially in section of one illustrative embodiment of the inven 15 tion;

Fig. 2 is a section taken on line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

" Fig. 3 is a section taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. t shows, in elevation and in partial section, a variant of the structure represented in Figs. 1 to 3;

Fig. 5 represents a second modification; and

Fig. 6, a third variant.

Referring to Figs. 1 to 3 of the drawings, there isshown a male assembly composed of a bolt a carrying a roller a and having a body portion of rectangular section except where it engages with the female portion of the lock, this engaging portion having a trapezoidal section (Fig. and including a first inclined surface a sloping backward, downward, and away from the door frame, and a second inclined surface a sloping backward and downward, but being formed of generatrices lying parallel to the door frame (or even sloping slightly towards the latter),hooks a mounted on a yoke forming an abutment for bolt a,spring c attached to pin 0 rigidly mounted on casing cl supporting the male asse1nbly,a pivoted hand lever 0 operable to bear against roller a to retract bolta,-a spring 7 coupled to lever 0 at f and engaging with one of hooks a ,and a latch g, whose use is optional, operative to lock lever c in position.

The above-described male assembly coacts with a female assembly composed of a shell 72. formed and dimensioned so that its upper and n'ient 'of bolt a, said bolt does not tend to get .made of rectangular cross-section through- 469,105, and in Belgium August 2, 1929.

lower parallel edges band (Fig; 3) lie clear of bolt (1, whilean inclined'surface 6 contacts withsurface (1* of the latter. Shell h is provided with a reentrant protruding porion formed to present (1) a sloping portion if over which the free end of bolt (1 rides when the door is closed, and (2) an extension A which contacts firmly with surface 71 of a, recess 2' forming part of easing d.

The lock operates as follows:

Casing d and shell h being mounted on the inside of the door and on the door-frame respectively, when the door is closed, the free end of bolt a contacts with surface h and is forced inward,'but as soon as closure is complete springs backward into the inside of I shell h under the action'of springs'e and f. In" closed position, surface If contacts with i and prevents downward movement, while contact of surfaces a and prevents upward movement. As' surface I) wears, springs e and f, move bolt a gradually to the left, further and further into shell h. The male'and female assemblies are thus held firmly together against movement in any di- 7 rection, and the combination of sloping surface a and springs e and f compensate for wear of the surface 79 Inclined surface (1 acts as a safety device to prevent bolt (1 from escaping surface when the lock has been incompletely closed and a pressure is exerted to open the door. As surface a does not slope relatively to the direction of displaceout of engagement with surface 6 as would happen if the free end of the bolt ended with the sloping surface a 7 Obviously, surface If may be arranged to rest on the inferior portion of recess 2' andsurfaces b and a a inclinedin the opposite direct on. Such an arrangement has, however the disadvantage of-throwing the weight of the door 011 the bolt. I

In the variant shown in Fig. 4, bolt a is out and, instead of providing inclined surfaces a a 6 as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, the aXis of bolt is inclined as shown. In the construction shown in Fig. 4 the recess in shell 71.

is provided with surfaces correspondingly in- {(30 clined to the bolt a for engaging with the latter in the usual way. It will thus be seen that, as bolt a wears, springs (not shown) which serve the same purpose described above and shown in Fig. 1 as springs e, 7, advance the bolt so as to correct for play.

Figs. 5 and 6 show variants of interengaging surfaces if, and 2, the latter being in clined rather than horizontal as in Fig. 1 and exerting thrust towards or away from the hinges supporting the door, the rest of the assembly remaining the same.

From the foregoing description, it will be seen that whether the bolt structure be oft-he type shown in Figs. 1 to 3 Fig. 4, the general principle employed-is to incline the contacting surfaces of elements a and h in some direction so that Wear may be taken up by spring-s cand f.

In the claims that follow the word in clinecl is to be interpreted as forming an angle with the plane of the horizon, of the azimuth, or a plane at right angles to the latter.

l/Vhat'I claim is 1. Ina lock, a female element provided with a plane surface inclined relatively to a vertical plane, a male element having a plane surface of like inclination to the inclined surface of said female element, that portion of said male element provided with saidinc lined surface being, at least in part, of diminishing section, a rigid shell associated with said male element, said shell being positionedso as to frictionally contact with, and rest upon, an exterior portion of said female el.ement, said shell being mounted so that when in contact with said female element, it opposes the thrust produced by contact of the inclined surfaces of said male and female elements, and a spring reacting on said male element and tending to force the latter into said femaleelement.

2. In a lock, a female element provided with a plane surface inclined relatively to a vertical plane, a male element havinga plane inclined surface of the same inclination as the inclined surface of said female element, that portion of said male element provided with said inclined surface, being, at least in part, of varying sect on, a spring tending to force the inclined surfaces of said male and female elements into contact with one another, a shell associated with said male element, said shell having a reentrant portion.

formed thereon and positioned to contact with, and to restupon, the exterior of said 3. The lock construction defined in claim 1 in which the male element is provided at its free extremity with a plane surface portion lying substantiallyin the direction of dis free extremity with a substantially plane surface portion angularly disposed with respect to said inclined surface of the male element.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

ROBERT BIENAIME. 

